24
by August08
Summary: Her mother was within her grasp; she just needed to know Tang Shen's location. However, the man who knew where Shen was wasn't talking. Now, Karai has 24 hours to make Alucard talk before Shredder and Bishop silence him...permanently. 2012 'verse. Takes place directly after Lost in Shadows.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N** : Here it is; the sequel to Lost in Shadows. More about Alucard's past will be revealed in this story that hadn't been revealed in the first one. As well as some other interesting twists. I apologize in advance for this chapter being so short, but I felt that it ended off at a good point. I'll try to have the other chapters longer and more in depth. I hope you enjoy the story.

 **Disclaimer** : I own nothing. Only the OCs

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 _"Hi," came a small, timid voice._

 _Alucard looked up to see a pretty young woman with short blonde hair and crystal blue eyes standing before him. "Hi," he replied back._

 _The woman held out her hand. "I'm Paige Johnson."_

 _Alucard took her hand and shook it. "Alucard. Sorry I don't have a last name to give you."_

 _Paige smiled. "That's okay. I heard you're new to Toronto."_

 _Alucard looked around the police station. He had only been in Toronto for a couple of weeks, but it was already starting to feel like home._

 _"Heard about the rookie cop from Nowhere, huh?" Alucard joked._

 _Paige chuckled. "My brother's a detective with Homicide. And he knows_ everyone _here. So, when there's a new guy, it's not long before he's telling people about it," she explained._

 _Alucard nodded. "I see. So, what's your brother's name? So, I can be sure to make myself scarce when he's around."_

 _Paige laughed. "His name is Scott. And, he's not that bad. The Toronto P.D. is his second family. He'll treat you as good as gold," she said. She grew shy. "But, maybe, I can...show you around the city sometime," Paige offered._

 _Alucard smiled. "That would be great. I'd like that."_

 _Paige nodded. "It's a date," she said. "See ya."_

 _Alucard watched her walk away._

 _"Oh, one more thing," Paige said, without turning around. "It's time to take a breath."_

 _She opened the door and a tidal wave came crashing through the doors._

Alucard was forced back to reality when he was pulled from a tank of water. He coughed and gasped for air. He was strapped to a table that was suspended by four chains. His chest burned with each cough. Above him, standing at a control panel, were Bishop and Shredder. Bishop looked to be enjoying himself while Shredder looked like he wanted to kill someone.

"You said he would talk," Shredder growled.

"He will," Bishop assured him. "This is the best way to guarantee he'll talk."

"All you are doing is giving him a bath," Shredder sneered.

Bishop gave him an impatient look. "I created him. I know him best. He still remembers the creation tank. He woke up prematurely and nearly drowned because of panic. Since then he's had an absolute, paralysing fear of being submerged in water. It's physical, as well as psychological torture for him."

Alucard panted for breath. He tugged at the straps around his wrists and ankles, but they wouldn't give. "Why don't you just kill me, now?" he called up. "I'll never tell you what you want to know."

"Never say never, Alucard," Bishop called back down. "You'll talk. One way or another, you'll talk."

He pulled a lever and the table, along with Alucard, was submerged in the tank again. It took everything within Alucard not to panic. Scenes from the genetics lab flashed through his memories. The lab, the creation tank; everything came rushing back, things he had fought so hard to forget.

He wasn't going to talk. They were going to have to kill him. Alucard closed his eyes and drifted back into the realm of his memories; a time when it was peaceful and everything was good. Through the water, Alucard could hear the muffled sounds of a door opening and people talking. One was a female voice, the other belonged to Shredder.

"He's not going to talk if you keep torturing him," Karai said.

"This is none of your concern, Karai," Shredder told her.

"He'll be too traumatized to talk," Karai argued. "You've been at this for hours. Can't you see he'd rather die than to tell you anything?"

Shredder gave his daughter a dangerous look. "Watch your tongue, Karai," he warned.

Karai swallowed nervously, but didn't back down. "Give him a break. Let me talk to him, somewhere other than this lab. I can make him talk. Just give me two days."

Shredder and Bishop glanced at each other, both contemplating the offer.

"Two days," Karai repeated. "Please."

Shredder turned back to her. "You have one," he said.

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Reviews are welcome, flames are not


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N** : From here onward each chapter will start and end with the time until it runs out. A lot can happen in 24 hours, let's see what happens :)

 **Disclaimer** : see chapter one

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 _23:59:59_

The dungeon echoed with a metallic slam as the iron cell door was shut and locked. Karai stood off to the side, watching. Alucard lay in the cell, trembling and soaking wet. Tiger Claw gave Karai a warning look before heading back upstairs. Karai knew she had a limited amount of time. She had to make good headway in the first few minutes if she wanted to prove to her father that she could get information out of someone without the use of torture. Karai stepped up to the cell door and looked in at the shivering detective.

Alucard opened his eyes and looked up at her. Fear shone in those amber orbs, and it made Karai's stomach lurch. Bishop and her father treated him like he was a piece of property to be used however they saw fit. It made her sick.

"Are you my new interrogator?" Alucard whispered. "Karai, isn't it?"

"Yes," Karai replied. "I just want to talk."

Alucard smiled humorlessly. "That's what they all say," he said breathlessly, sitting up against the wall. "That's what Bishop told me before he tried to kill me."

Karai's heart skipped a beat, but she hid her emotions behind an unreadable mask. "I'm not Bishop, nor my father."

Alucard let out a strained laugh. Karai frowned.

"Sorry," Alucard apologized. "That just hit me funny. Shredder as a father figure..." He shook his head. "I don't see it."

"Well, he is," Karai told him hotly. "And, unless you want to go back into that oversized bathtub, you'll tell me what I want to know."

Alucard nodded in understanding. "It all makes sense, now," he said quietly. "You're Daddy's little girl, after all. Saying one thing one minute then threatening something else the next. You don't care what happens to me, princess." He tapped his temple. "I can see it all; in here. You want me to fry."

"Well, you _have_ been a thorn in my father's side," Karai pointed out. "And when he gets mad everyone suffers, including me."

"So sad," Alucard mocked. "Has your father tried to kill you, yet? When he does, then come talk to me about Daddy issues."

Karai bit back a growl. She took a deep breath to keep her emotions in check. "I didn't come down here to talk about my father. I came to talk about..."

"Your mother," Alucard finished. He shook his head. "Sorry, princess, but that topic is classified."

"But-" Karai began.

"It's an on-going investigation. Detective-client confidentiality and all that," Alucard cut in.

Karai tightened her hands into fists. "Don't you want to reunite her with her family?" she asked.

"Of course I do," Alucard said. "But, like I said, it's on-going; meaning I don't have all the answers, yet."

It was a blatant lie, but Karai didn't seem to notice. And Alucard wasn't going to tell Shredder's baby girl that Tang Shen was where she belonged.

"Her family is here," Karai said.

"You are, maybe. But, not that can-opener you call a father," Alucard told her. He stared into her eyes, her mind opening up to him. "The lies he's told you. It's no wonder you rebel."

Karai jerked back as if she had been struck. "What?" she asked.

"I found out more about Shredder in the first few seconds I saw him than you'll ever know in your entire life," Alucard said. "That's the thing about telepathy...you can't turn it off. You can drown out the thoughts with white noise, but they're always there; just below the surface, waiting to break through. But, then, the thoughts get so loud that they overwhelm you." He narrowed his eyes. "That's what it was like first meeting Shredder. The hatred, the malice. His thoughts were so loud I'm surprised Bishop couldn't hear them."

"What are you talking about?" Karai demanded.

"Your father, princess. Thoughts about you and your mother and some guy named Hamato Yoshi," Alucard said. He saw fire spark in Karai's eyes at the name. "I know you've been told the truth about him," Alucard said. "About Yoshi."

"It's not the truth," Karai denied.

"I heard it straight out of the horse's mind," Alucard said. "Shredder's been lying to you, princess. Leonardo's been telling you the truth."

Karai reached behind her back and took a hold of the sword strapped to the small of her back. Alucard smirked.

"What's ya gonna do? Kill me? The knowledge about your mother dies with me, if you do," he reminded her.

Karai huffed and stormed out of the dungeon. Alucard settled back against the wall and sighed.

"If only you could see the truth, princess," he whispered.

He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. Dreaming of Paige Johnson and the life he had back in Toronto. If only life had remained like that; peaceful and carefree. He dreamed of the possibilities that were open if he had accepted Paige for more than just a friend. He could have had a wife, a family. He could have had what Splinter now had. But, Alucard didn't even know if he was able to reproduce. That had been the reason why he turned Paige down. He had been the cause of all her grief and, ultimately, her death.

Paige was just one of seventy-two skeletons he had hiding in his closet. The flames burned across his skin, the smell of burning flesh passing over his nose. The faces of the dead flashed through his memories. Each one with their eyes open, staring at him, blaming him for their untimely demise. He had tried to make amends; it was the reason he had appeared in New York City as a Private Investigator. It was his penance for taking away those innocents. Alucard clenched his teeth as tears streamed down his face.

"Please," he breathed. "Forgive me."

 _23:30:15_

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Reviews are welcome, flames are not


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N** : I've been in a writing groove lately...sadly it's not for fan fiction, but for original works. I have too many stories on the go, I don't know which ones to work on. But, I've managed to snag the muse for this story and got out a decent chapter. Here's chapter 3; hope you enjoy it.

 **Disclaimer** : see chapter one

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 _23:27:13_

Karai ran a sharpening stone over the edge of her short sword. With each pass, she pictured herself plunging the sword into Alucard's chest. And she thought Leonardo was infuriating. Alucard was five times, if not, ten times worse than the blue masked mutant. There was no way a rat was her biological father. A snowball had a better chance in hell than that being true.

Karai looked up when she heard footsteps pad across the floor towards her. She tightened her grip on the hilt of her sword and the stone. A shadow fell over her from behind. She knew who was behind her even without looking. The smell of cat was too strong not to miss.

"Did he already confess his sins to you?" Tiger Claw taunted.

"He will," Karai promised. "It's only a matter of time."

"Which you are running out of," Tiger Claw pointed out, no longer taunting. "You only have-"

"Twenty-four hours," Karai cut in. "I know. I just...need to think. Stupid telepath's playing mind games."

Tiger Claw hummed in thought. "Perhaps you should start playing mind games of your own," he suggested.

Karai looked over her shoulder. "How do you deceive a telepath?" she asked. "Hmm? What's your suggestion for _that_? He can read my mind and know that I'm trying to trick him."

 _"You can try to drown out the thoughts with white noise, but they're always there,"_ Alucard's voice echoed through her memory.

Karai's eyes widened. "White noise," she breathed.

Tiger Claw frowned. "Pardon?"

"If I can bury my true thoughts under so many layers of white noise, he wouldn't be able to tell which are the true intentions and which are the false ones," Karai explained. "He'd be risking burn out."

"That could work," Tiger Claw said. "But, be careful not to let your true intentions slip through."

Karai dropped the sharpening stone and got to her feet, hurrying out of the dojo. As she walked, Karai slipped the sword back into its sheath. She headed down into the dungeon, all the while piling up the layers of thoughts she would use to hide her intentions. Alucard was still sitting up against the wall, his head tipped forward and his eyes closed. By the sounds of his breathing, he was asleep. Karai almost felt guilty for having to wake him up...almost.

"Hey! Wake up!" Karai shouted, banging on the cell door.

Alucard jolted awake, blinking the sleep out of his eyes. He squinted up at the young girl in front of him.

"Hello again, princess," Alucard greeted. "What tortures have you got planned for me, now?"

"I was just thinking how unfair it is that you know so much about me, yet I know nothing about you," Karai said.

Alucard shifted into a more comfortable sitting position. "Is this really how you want to spend what little time you have?" he asked. "Asking me about my past?"

Karai shrugged. "You won't tell me anything else," she pointed out.

Alucard searched her eyes, but her thoughts were so wild he couldn't tell what her game plan was. He had to back off because he was beginning to develop a headache.

"Alright," he said. "What do you want to know?"

"I heard Bishop say that he made you," Karai started. "What did he mean by that?"

Alucard squirmed under the question. If this was how she wanted to waste her time that was fine with him. He didn't have to like it, but he would satisfy her curiosity.

"I guess you could say I'm a genetically enhanced human being capable of things normal human beings could only dream about," Alucard said. "I started out like any other human. However, when I was born I was immediately placed in a tank where numerous experiments were performed on me. I was injected with several different types of serums to enhance my speed, strength, intelligence and growth. Where a normal infant would take years to grow and develop, it took me months to mature." He trailed off, his eyes becoming haunted. "However..."

Karai waited through the short pause, but Alucard never spoke. "However?" she pressed.

"I woke up without Bishop giving me the wake up call," Alucard continued in a quiet voice. He cringed; inhaling deeply and sharply. "I didn't know where I was...who I was...I didn't even know _what_ I was. All I knew was that I was somewhere dark and wet and dangerous. And I wanted out."

Screams and cries echoed through Alucard's memories. His own screams still haunted him. Karai looked pale, her eyes wide. Alucard swallowed nervously before speaking again.

"I was flawed from the beginning," he went on. "It became even more apparent when Bishop put me through a series of tests to determine what my abilities were." He looked ashamed of what he was about to say. "I didn't make it past the first round without burning out," he whispered.

"Is that why Bishop tried to kill you?" Karai asked.

Alucard nodded slowly. "First super soldier ever created successfully and it was a complete failure. Bishop tried to terminate me by submerging me in water and then running electrical current through the water." A small smirk touched his lips. "I took out half the base when I went super nova the first time. But, I was free."

"You deliberately burned yourself out?" Karai asked in surprise.

"When you're desperate and fighting to live...you'll do just about anything to accomplish that," Alucard told her. "So, like I said: When Shredder tries to kill you, come talk to me about having Daddy issues."

As if on queue, footsteps echoed down the stone steps. Karai turned around as Bishop appeared in the doorway. He regarded the girl and his soldier before speaking.

"Making any progress?" Bishop asked.

"Yes," Karai replied. "Now, go away."

Bishop smirked. "Messing up your concentration, am I?"

Karai glanced back at Alucard. He looked like he was having a hard time trying not to say anything. It was clear he wanted the agent to fry, but Karai had heard that Alucard had been programmed to not be able to lift a hand against Bishop. If Alucard told her what she wanted to know, Karai considered giving him his wish and running her sword through Bishop's heart...if he had one, that is.

"I just came to remind you, Karai that you're one hour down," Bishop said. "Twenty-three hours left."

With that said, Bishop turned around and headed back up the steps. Karai watched Bishop disappear around the corner before turning back to face Alucard. He looked shaken; and he every right to be. Bishop had tried to kill him and now he was being tortured by the same man. And for what? What was Alucard protecting? He was keeping Shen away from her family. Then, Shredder popped into Karai's mind. Was Alucard trying to protect Shen from Shredder? If so, why? Karai knew she was wasting time in trying to figure those questions out on her own; she needed to hear the answer from Alucard, himself.

"What will it take for you to answer my questions about my mother?" Karai asked, throwing her white noise idea out the window.

Alucard looked up at her. The dungeon was deathly silent as the two stared into each other's eyes. After a few minutes, Alucard turned away, curled into a ball and closed his eyes.

"You'll tell," he whispered.

"I won't tell anyone. I promise," Karai vowed.

Alucard shook his head. "You always tell," he said. "No one keeps secrets from Shredder. If I tell you everything I know it'll get back to him. And then he'll finish what he started all those years ago in Japan." A sad frown furrowed his brow. "And this time, not even Tang Shen would be able to escape Shredder's wrath."

 _22:58:40_

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Reviews are welcome, flames are not


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